title: Different effects of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in artificial and in environmental mixtures on the free living nematode C. elegans.
abstract: Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) are known to exert mutagenic and carcinogenic effects. Research on extracted organic matter (EOM) from environmental mixtures has indicated several mechanisms of intracellular damage in living organisms. The toxic effect of environmental pollutants is usually assessed on cell systems or in single species. We used the model organism Caenorhabditis elegans to compare the effect of synthetic PAHs with that of the EOM from environmental mixtures. The biological effect was measured by monitoring the expression level of some crucial genes, sensitive parameters of the organism's response. The results indicate the ability of C. elegans to counteract damage by mounting a stress-response only in the presence of EOM. On the other hand the exposure of C. elegans to a mixture of synthetic PAHs determines the silencing of the transcriptional machinery, thus preventing the synthesis of proteins that are important for both the damage repair mechanism and survival itself. The results strongly indicate that the study of environmental toxicant effects at the molecular level may provide information on their mechanism of action.
authors.affiliation: Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology 'Ernesto Quagliariello', Via Orabona 4, University of Bari, 70126, Bari, Italy.
authors.forename: Vania Cosma
authors.initials: VC
authors.lastname: Liuzzi
authors.forename: Barbara Elisabetta
authors.initials: BE
authors.lastname: Daresta
authors.forename: Gianluigi
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: de Gennaro
authors.forename: Carla
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: De Giorgi
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D017173:Caenorhabditis elegans / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000235:genetics / Q000254:growth & development / Q000378:metabolism; D029742:Caenorhabditis elegans Proteins / Q000096:biosynthesis* / Q000235:genetics; D004305:Dose-Response Relationship, Drug; D004784:Environmental Monitoring / Q000379:methods*; D004785:Environmental Pollutants / Q000633:toxicity*; D018384:Oxidative Stress / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000235:genetics; D011084:Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons / Q000633:toxicity*; D020133:Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction; D014158:Transcription, Genetic / Q000187:drug effects
chemical_list: D029742:Caenorhabditis elegans Proteins; D004785:Environmental Pollutants; D011084:Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons